Bulk Carrier Touches Bottom Twice on Columbia River

The 751-foot Hong Kong-flagged motor vessel Rosco Palm sits soft aground in the Columbia River near Skamokawa, Wash, Aug. 12, 2016. U.S. Coast Guard Photo

The U.S. Coast Guard responded over the weekend to a Chinese bulk carrier which had ran aground twice in the Columbia River near Skamokawa, Washington.

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The Coast Guard reported that the 751-foot, Hong Kong-flagged MV Rosco Palm ran aground at 7:49 p.m. on Friday night, refloated, and then grounded a second time after being moved to a safe position a few miles upstream. The second incident occurred as the vessel was at anchor while awaiting an assessment at first light Saturday morning.

The vessel was refloated with the tide at 7:40 am Saturday. The Coast Guard said there was no indication of pollution being discharged. Later Saturday morning the vessel was moved to an anchorage with pilot and tug assist.

“We are fully engaged with our port partners to ensure we are responding to this event with the appropriate resources needed to minimize potential negative impacts to both natural resources and commerce” said Lt. Cmdr. Karen Denny, inspections division chief, Marine Safety Unit Portland. “We will continue to monitor the situation and respond as necessary with our partners from the Washington and Oregon along with local response teams.”

A Columbia River Pilot was aboard the vessel on Saturday and tugs were assisting the vessel transit upstream to verify the integrity of the hull and propulsion system.

The cause of the grounding is unknown at this time and will be investigated.

The MV Rosco Palm was headed for Kalama, Washington when the incident occurred. As of Monday the ship was already underway on its voyage back to China.